Animal Research, Accountability, Openness and Public Engagement: Report from an International Expert Forum

Abstract

Simple SummaryThe issues of openness, transparency and public engagement about animal research have taken focus in several different countries in recent years. This paper gives an account of a two-day-long expert forum that brought together policy experts and academics from Australia, Canada, Germany, New Zealand, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States. The aim was to share current governance practices regarding openness and transparency of animal research and to brainstorm ideas for better public engagement. The facilitated conversations were transcribed and analysed to create this report and recommendations that encourage international policy-makers and other stakeholders to engage in genuine dialogue about the use of animals in research.AbstractIn November 2013, a group of international experts in animal research policy (n = 11) gathered in Vancouver, Canada, to discuss openness and accountability in animal research. The primary objective was to bring together participants from various jurisdictions (United States, Sweden, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Canada and the United Kingdom) to share practices regarding the governance of animals used in research, testing and education, with emphasis on the governance process followed, the methods of community engagement, and the balance of openness versus confidentiality. During the forum, participants came to a broad consensus on the need for: (a) evidence-based metrics to allow a “virtuous feedback” system for evaluation and quality assurance of animal research, (b) the need for increased public access to information, together with opportunities for stakeholder dialogue about animal research, (c) a greater diversity of views to be represented on decision-making committees to allow for greater balance and (d) a standardized and robust ethical decision-making process that incorporates some sort of societal input. These recommendations encourage aspirations beyond merely imparting information and towards a genuine dialogue that represents a shared agenda surrounding laboratory animal use.

Open Transparent Communication about Animals in Laboratories: Dialog for Multiple Voices and Multiple Audiences

“…In the same way, information about animal use will always be partial. A one-way email message, like a scientific manuscript, press release, television show, or a lab’s web page, may be informative, but if it is not invitational, inviting questions and even comments, does it count as openness [ 9 , 40 ]? Messaging is not dialogue.…”

“…Tours, classroom visits, and some innovative media have been staples of openness efforts through the years; the Concordat encourages limited facility access to media and public, but does not require it [ 2 ]. Live interactions (of course, live via the internet in the era of COVID) offer a greater chance for information-receivers to ask the questions that are important to them, or to see things that they prioritize [ 40 , 41 , 42 ]. Frequently, in my experience giving tours, classroom presentations, or otherwise responding to outsiders’ questions, we reach a limit of what I feel I can show or tell.…”

“…My personal story well illustrates differences between the US and European systems, with their contrasting approaches to regulatory oversight and data availability [ 2 , 4 , 5 , 40 ]. Thus, in this essay, I look to other countries’ developments as possible harbingers of changes that may come to the United States.…”

“…Though I know my own previous institution’s history in some detail, I see no reason to think that that university is any more or less guarded or non-transparent about its animal use than most US universities and companies. The US, in general, is moving more slowly toward the increased openness that the Concordat, the Basel Declaration (now renamed Animal Research Tomorrow), Speaking of Research, the EARA or other countries’ openness initiatives are modeling [ 4 , 5 , 26 , 40 , 65 , 66 , 67 ]. I am not alone in my dual belief that animal research can produce vital knowledge for promoting human, animal, and environmental health and that sentient animals deserve stronger welfare protections in laboratories.…”

Perceptions of laboratory animal facility managers regarding institutional transparency

“…In contrast, North America has seen little public engagement regarding the use of animals in science. A meeting of international animal research policy experts found that while the level of openness and regulatory frameworks differed worldwide, these differences could be used to advance the discussion on transparency [ 10 ].…”